CRITERIA AND PROCEDURES FOR THE EVALUATION AND AWARDING OF THE AOSTA VALLEY CONTEMPORARY ART PRIZE
FIRST EDITION (2026)
Introduction
In accordance with the provisions of Regional Law no. 89 of 21 December 1993 (Regulation of initiatives and interventions aimed at promoting culture and science in the Aosta Valley), as most recently amended by Regional Law no. 23 of 28 July 2025 (CHAPTER III, Art. 2 quater), and by Resolution of the Regional Government no. 1147 of 11 August 2025, the Autonomous Region of Aosta Valley establishes, starting from 2026, the “Aosta Valley Contemporary Art Prize”: a new prize for artists and artistic collectives, aimed at promoting contemporary creativity and acquiring the winning works for the region’s art heritage, so that they may enter the collections of Castello Gamba – Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of the Aosta Valley, a place dedicated to the conservation and enhancement of contemporary art. The artists involved are asked to engage with the history and environment of the region, and with their potential, in order to return them to the community and to diverse audiences through their own language.
Pursuant to the above-mentioned law, a Jury was established by Resolution of the Regional Government no. 1412 of 24 October 2025 and was assigned the task of drafting the Criteria and procedures for awarding the Prize.
For the year 2026, the following Criteria and procedures for awarding the Prize have been established.
Art. 1 – Theme of the 2026 Prize
For the first edition, the theme will be Landscape: between contemplation and resource. Its interpretation shall take into account a broad understanding of landscape, without distinction between human-made and natural environments, understood as a “beloved space”, but also as a place of truth.
A reflection is required on the following aspects: nature made of wonder, but also of conflict for survival; landscape becoming a place of the self and a shared territory, where the individual becomes sociality and community, between self-defence and desire for the other; territory as a place to be defended, but also to be shared, between permeability and identity, leading to dialogue, confrontation, sharing and aggregation.
Art. 2 – General Characteristics of the Prize
The Prize, organized by the Department of Education, Culture and Identity Policies of the Autonomous Region of Aosta Valley through the Department of the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage and Activities, featuring Castello Gamba – Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Châtillon and Forte di Bard as key venues, has the following general characteristics:
1. it is conducted by the aforementioned Jury, appointed to participate in all operational phases and related communication activities, whose decisions, made on the basis of a qualitative assessment, are final and not subject to appeal;
2. it is by invitation, that is, subject to a selection carried out by the aforementioned Jury;
3. it is open to all media of contemporary visual arts;
4. it is addressed to artists/artistic collectives without limitation of nationality or age;
5. it excludes from admission to the Prize projects by artists/artistic collectives who are members of the Jury or their relatives, under penalty of exclusion.
Art. 3 – Selection Procedures and Award Criteria
As a first step, the Jury identifies 6 artists/artistic collectives to whom it awards a “Project Prize”. The selection of the 6 artists is carried out through the evaluation of curricula vitae and artistic portfolios, based on the topicality and originality of the research, experimentation and multidisciplinarity of languages. Artists/artistic collectives are offered the opportunity to be guided within the regional territory in order to ensure the best possible knowledge of its characteristics and potential, and to develop artistic projects resulting from genuine engagement with it.
Specific indications:
1. the works must be original and unpublished, never previously presented or published, and entirely feasible within the assigned budget (including fee, production and transport costs), gross of any charges; technical sponsorships for the production of the works are permitted;
2. the 6 projects will be transferred to the Autonomous Region of Aosta Valley as documentation materials and as part of the Prize Archive; the Region acquires all rights of reproduction and enhancement of the documentation and project materials submitted;
3. a public presentation of the 6 selected projects is planned at Forte di Bard, in which the artists are required to participate.
The Jury, taking into account the quality and feasibility of the artistic project submitted, its relevance to the theme and the relationship established with the present time, history and environment of the Aosta Valley, awards the “Prize for the winning artist/artistic collective” to one of the six selected artists.
The winning work becomes part of the collections of the Autonomous Region of Aosta Valley, without further charges, accompanied by the specific Protocol for the Authenticity, Care and Protection of Contemporary Art (PACTA).
Any further enhancement actions concerning the winning work and/or the selected projects may be implemented by the Autonomous Region of Aosta Valley, including, by way of example and without limitation: solo or group exhibitions, print and web publications, videos, films, documentaries, events and presentations.
Art. 4 – Required Documentation and Materials
Artists/artistic collectives are required to take particular care in producing the documentation for the project of the work they intend to create, clearly explaining its adherence to the Prize theme and its relationship with the territory, as well as any participatory elements envisaged.
The minimum project materials expected are:
• short biography (approximately 2,000 characters);
• descriptive report presenting: the concept of the work, the research underlying its conception, the connection with the Prize theme and its main characteristics (max. 10,000 characters);
• explanatory visual elements, including at least one of the following: renderings, sketches, boards, photographs or videos;
• technical sheet of the work, indicating: title, medium, dimensions, execution details, materials and any other information necessary for its realization and installation;
• detailed budget indicating all costs (including fee, production costs, any professionals involved in the realization and transport, mention of any technical sponsors), inclusive of all tax and social security charges.
The submitted material will not be returned. The times and methods for submitting the projects will be communicated directly to the artists/artistic collectives.
The time allowed for the development of the projects is two months from the communication of the invitation, while the deadline for the production of the work by the winner is six months.
Art. 5 – The Prizes
Prize amounts:
• 4,000 euros each for no. 6 Project Prizes intended for each of the selected artists/artistic collectives;
• 21,000 euros for no. 1 Prize for the winning artist/artistic collective for the production and acquisition of the work.
The monetary amounts are to be considered inclusive of all tax and social security charges. The prizes will be paid in several instalments, namely an advance payment upon proclamation and settlement of the balance following delivery of the project and/or the work.
Art. 6 – Participation Requirements
Participation in the Prize is subject to unconditional acceptance of these criteria and procedures for awarding the Prize, pursuant to Art. 3. By accepting them, participants in the Aosta Valley Contemporary Art Prize authorize the Regional Administration to process their personal data (pursuant to Article 13 of the General Data Protection Regulation EU 2016/679), in order to allow the proper conduct of the various selection and Prize management phases.
